“Is there a reason you’re naked in my bed?” (((( :
prompt: “Is there a reason you’re naked in my bed?”
[ AU ]
the question begged an answer that mikhail wasn’t really confident in. it was an awkward situation, for one, that robbed him of his usual wit and dulled his sharp grin. but there was a smirk nonetheless, and he sat casually upon her thick sheets as if he wasn’t left in his trousers, if having his chest covered in bandages was anything close to casual.
“this is hardly naked, seolhyun. clearly, you exaggerate.”
to be fair, she had called for him first. maybe she just wanted to talk. how could he know? his shirt and his jacket were folded hastily beside him, and could be worn quickly if she asked him to.
nevertheless she took her place in the empty space beside him, and made no such effort in hiding the concern evident in the slight pout of her lips, and the frown that had begun to form on her face.
“this is naked enough.” she touches the perforated cloth above his heart, made him itch to take it off. the way she looked at him was enough to say that talking wouldn’t be much of an option and, if it was, it wouldn’t last long at all. “what kind of trouble did you get into this time?”
“bandits seem to favour the area around the badlands a lot these days,” he explained, keeping his palms upon her bed and letting her fingers trace where they wished. “so we took an alternate route through the sea — and i’m not very good with sailing. and boats.” he saw the hint of a smile on seolhyun’s lips and continued: “and it wasn’t any better when pirates thought that it was a good idea to attack our ship.”
“did i not tell you to be more careful?” seolhyun’s question was accusatory. hurt, like this was his fault, like he wanted to be nearly sliced in half. but it didn’t bother mikhail too much — maybe just a little.
“my job isn’t exactly the safest one there is. protecting someone so high-profile has its downsides.”
seolhyun mumbled something he could not catch, but mikhail didn’t ask. there was a pause, heavy with time and space and everything else that kept mikhail’s hand on the sheets and not in her hair. she looked at him like she actually cared about him, and he let himself believe it.
but not for very long.
mikhail looked away before he could kiss her, and her hand stopped just above the edge of the trousers he wore, dark green against an even darker shade of red.
“so was there something you wanted me here for?” was his way of breaking the silence. her palm rested there, at his midsection, half of it bare skin and the other dressed in bandages to make sure that his would did not taint her bed. he already expected an answer — a command of some sort he was always willing to obey, because she knew he would even if she didn’t ask. because he was convenient. because he was here.
“i don’t want to open your wounds.” the words were sweet, underpinned by something genuine that made everything else taste like something of a bitter lie. “but yes, i…i just wanted to be with you.”
“well, now, i’m afraid i’ll have to disappoint you this time,” mikhail laughed, swallowing the hatred — not for her, but for himself, for what he was. “i’m not very good company when words come out of my mouth.”
“and who told you that?”
“no one.” mikhail was able to meet her gaze again. her hand found his own, and almost automatically, their fingers interlocked, finding something to fill in the gaps. “my mouth is only useful for getting me into trouble. why do you think i wear the mask so often?”
“mikhail —,”
“besides,” he continued, the grin softening into something somber, “i thought i was convenient for other thi —,”
“you are not.” seolhyun cut his statement short, squeezing the palm she held in her own. “you’re here because i want you here. with me.”
“then —?”
“not…necessarily in that way.”
it took a while to sink in — and would perhaps take even longer for him to understand.
“but —,” he closed his own mouth, lips forming into a straight line. “…i’m confused, i —,”
when it came to these things, to emotions, mikhail had difficulty in accepting that his presence — and it alone — could be enough. he needed to be useful, didn’t he? otherwise, why was he still alive, if he didn’t have some kind of purpose, if he couldn’t do something for someone? love was no more than a label, too simple a word to explain how much he wanted to see her happy and safe and —
and his thoughts were cut short by the soft but firmly-pressed lips upon his own. mikhail kissed her back, as naturally as one would breathe.
it felt like an apology than anything else.
a soft palm caressed a scarred cheek; a roughened hand curled above the side of her pulse that began to beat along the tune of his own. it, at least, worked to steal any more words from the tip of his tongue when she had stolen them with hers.
and when they slowed down to regain some semblance of oxygen in their lungs, she kissed him again — fleetingly, but enough — and mikhail looked at her and thought that, if things had been different, and if she wasn’t already someone else’s, then perhaps he had a chance, and they could have as many tomorrows as they wanted.
“i can’t stay long,” he told her regretfully, not wanting to move a single inch further away from her. they already had many miles between them on a regular basis.
seolhyun said nothing, and let go of his hand only to cradle his face in her palms. “you’ll come back, won’t you?”
“as long as you call for me,” he answered, before the cacophony outside became too much to bear. they were looking for him again, and if he was absent from the princess’ side too often, he might not be trusted to take his place there at all. mikhail leaned away; the separation was almost physically painful. “…will you?”
she nodded, and watched him dress himself again, and let him kiss her goodbye — and neither knew if it would be the last.
home ec has never been mikhail’s strong point. he’s decent at soccer -- if a scholarship is any kind of testament to that, although he doesn’t quite need it. the thing is, for kids like him, who’s had everything served to him on a platinum platter, home economics isn’t something he thinks he’s going to need in the near future. why make something himself when he can just pay others to do it?
still -- just because mikhail finds no use for it doesn’t mean the educational curriculum would think the same. that doesn’t mean that he’d be too happy about it either.
the only silver lining in this oppressive domestic cloud is the fact that he’s paired up with the cheerleader to make up for the whole baking mess that they’ve gotten themselves into.
mikhail makes an effort to clean his apartment. living alone has its benefits, like his parents never telling him what to do ( as if they’re ever around in the first place ), but it’s not meant to be hospitable in the first place. and it isn’t meant to be a place where they can practice baking, but he buys all the necessary ingredients and utensils beforehand. heck, he didn’t even realise he had a refrigerator until today.
he’s busy making sure that everything’s in his kitchen ( and that he actually has a stove, and an oven ) when a knock brings him to the door. mikhail’s hand runs through his scalp when he opens it with a smirk. “hey. didn’t think you’d actually come.”
